Sketchbook
by Blubbery Blueberry
Summary: Series of oneshots, all SasuHina, not necessarily connected. UP: It took eight years, eight Valentine's Days, for them to find themselves.
1. The Beginning

Before anything existed upon the Earth, there were only two non-beings that emerged from the chaotic nothingness the universe was once composed of. One was light and the other was darkness.

Long before the mountains stood proudly before the village, before the rivers ran freely in their beds, before these autumn leaves fell upon the wind, and long before humans and shinobi walked the lands, there were only these two things that flowed together as one and dispersed into two.

There was no good or evil, just power. There was no purpose, thus there was nothing but the purity of either separately and the balance of both together.

One could not survive without the other and together they both clashed and embraced each other in infinite circles for eternities. Even now, they are intertwined, though they are hidden now.

But when they intersected, things came into existence; the trees, the earth, the wind, the seas, the skies, the shining foreheads of farmers and bloody swords of the warlords, the smiles of the children and the tears of the dying were all birthed from the union of light and darkness. They were brothers and sisters, parent and offspring. Love and hate, sacrifice and vengeance, victory and loss, laughter and silence all stemmed from the same origins of light and darkness.

Even you and I are made of such stuff.

Yet soon, Time was created from the same elements and it overtook light and darkness until the two were dissected and strewn about everywhere in the world. There are remnants of these life-giving components, as their duality spins the balance of existence, but Time sealed their most concentrated shards away in two beings that encapsulated both non-beings best.

One had eyes of pure white and the other had a matching pair of abyssal black.

They were the only vessels capable of holding in an infinity and a void so Time hid the light and the darkness within each of these two humans – no, they were not entirely humans as they were two halves of a whole that encompassed something entirely beyond the boundaries of the mortal plane. They were never to meet or to entwine with each other again, Time had determined, for if they were to ever reunite, there would inevitably be a collision.

When two great forces come into contact with each other, impact is a given. But light and darkness have already melded together multiple times, each respective clash resulting in the cataclysms of many things, shaking the world dangerously on its fragile roots. Their last creation was Fate, which bound many other things tightly together to keep the world from disappearing. And Fate was the one that frantically tied these vessels together despite Time's vehement attempts to separate the two.

It was always a push or pull between these two chosen vessels, like a tide waning back and forth because of the force and gravity of something greater than either of them.

But just as things pulled apart roughly promise to rejoin just as fiercely, light and darkness will surely reunite… with consequences unforeseen.


	2. Treasure

After Sasuke came back, he was content to have at least one person never pay attention; Hinata never had eyes for him, not even once. But when her strange talents for finding the truly valuable things belying facades reveals itself, Sasuke finds himself more than a tad insulted that she never looked his way at all.

-oOo-

There were rumors that the Leaf had gained a formidable weapon as of late, a supposedly limitless resource that would inevitably turn the tides in almost any conflict. It was almost too fantastical to be a valid truth, but in hindsight, this was also the village that churned out frighteningly godlike shinobi or legends almost every generation. Reportedly, the Konoha shinobi were much more well-equipped and confident as they completed missions and attended diplomatic conferences than usual, creating an odd and noticeable streak of successful operations that boosted both reputation and apparently, according to an insider, the village's treasury. The hearsay spreading through the other hidden villages was comparable to a wildfire, fear and envy prominent among so-called allies. Everyone wanted desperately to know the Leaf's secret and how to attain it for themselves.

Sasuke himself had heard of these mysterious tales when he was a nuke-nin – another Jinchuuriki that was unaccounted for, small mountain god that was somehow trapped, a forbidden jutsu, a fortuneteller with the ability to manipulate time – but he hadn't invested too much of his curiosity into the matter mainly because not only was he occupied with hunting down several enemies at the time but also because he simply doubted the credibility of the vine of gossip that ran through ninja circles. Really, he'd listened to rumors relating to himself as he sat under a heavy hood drinking tea in seedy bars; Sasuke knew he didn't have eyes that shot black lasers filled with pheromones or was actually an angel of death in disguise. He didn't appreciate the exaggerated exonerations of his good looks (which reminded him of the crappy poems he was given by various fangirls back at the Academy) and he only felt intense disdain for those who believed he was homosexually attracted to a) Naruto, b) Itachi, and most atrociously of all, c) Orochimaru.

He nearly sliced off a couple tongues that day.

But now, he was back in Konoha again as one of their active-duty ninja and he'd been steadily rising through the ranks and village's trust just by walking around doing everyday things like grocery shopping and not stabbing every hoard of fangirls that came his way. It was a relatively easy lifestyle he lived and while he didn't appreciate the sedentary moments that came with being a shinobi on a village payroll, he did indeed like the peaceful quiet and white noise that slowly eroded his past. No longer did he feel the insatiable urge to avenge or slaughter, although he did feel tingles in his arm that alluded to the Chidori whenever he heard squealing or Naruto's raucous laughter grating on his ears.

And because of this sudden tranquility in his life, he found himself regaining old parts of himself that had existed before his brother's decisions changed his world forever, including his childishly wily curiosity about things he was reluctantly ignorant about. He never liked being left in the dark, left to wilt in ignorance like so many of his compatriots, because he refused to believe that he was in the same standing as most of the idiots he was forced to deal with. Secrets were what had destroyed his childhood and being kept out of the loop, especially with everyone else aware of them, irritated both his pride and his memories. Now, as an adult who'd finally broken free of suppressed emotion, Sasuke was almost over eager in learning all that he could.

It started when blabbermouth Ino had rambunctiously burst into Ichiraku's with a wide grin, practically demanding that the Hyuuga girl – who had been sitting inconspicuously in a corner glancing at Naruto occasionally, though Sasuke hadn't really taken too much notice of her – go shopping with her to search for a gift for Tsunade's upcoming birthday.

"I need the blessing of a zashiki-warashi!" the blonde girl had explained as the shy girl attempted to evade the invitation with some bland excuse.

Sakura, who had been blatantly ignored by her "best friend," glared at Ino with a ferocity that Sasuke hadn't ever seen before, only to be matched by her apparent love for him. It was evident that Ino had said something wrong, though he couldn't pinpoint the exact reason, and he couldn't very well ask why especially as Ino pulled the Hyuuga into a wild gallop towards Hokage Tower. His female teammate herself had only huffed impatiently after scanning the crowds cautiously as if looking for eavesdroppers and then she grudgingly continued her conversation with Naruto while pretending as if nothing unusual had just occurred.

It was so obvious that something completely irregular had just happened that Sasuke was surprised no one else had said a word about it, though perhaps, he mused, he was just more observant than the other ninja eating at the stand.

But then over the next few weeks after that incident, the term _zashiki-warashi _cropped up more times than what could be considered normal.

"This is pure silver. It was a gift from that kidnaped princess we recovered," a kunoichi had said haughtily to her teammate while flourishing an ornate dagger. "That mission in Iwagakure was a complete success even though our odds were so bad. We had the blessing of a _zashiki-warashi_, you know."

Her companion had looked at the weapon with admiration glazing his eyes. "You're so lucky to have the _zashiki-warashi _on your side, dammit."

They were normal looking chuunin as far as Sasuke could tell and they weren't particularly special with their non-descript brown hair and plain features. The fact that they used an out-of-place phrase such as _zashiki-warashi_ so casually meant that it was probably a codename, since he really did doubt the existences of mischievous little spirits that brought good fortune even if demons like the Kyuubi did end up being real. But these ninja were so _inferior _to him in terms of skill and rank – how did they know this secret while he was only just becoming aware? Ino was still of the higher ranking ninja, especially as a member of the legendary formation Ino-Shika-Cho, the Rookie Nine, and of the Yamanaka clan who practically specialized in secrets, so it was easier to explain her involvement with the hidden movements of the Leaf. The Hyuuga girl, according to his memory, was also of high enough merit that he could excuse her knowledge of this _zashiki-warashi _also. And yet, even these nameless cannon-fodder idiots were included in this ring of mystery. He felt like he was suffocating in ignorance.

And then the Rookie Nine began to inadvertently taunt him with their knowledge.

"He was blessed by the youthful _zashiki-warashi_!" cried a teary Rock Lee on the anniversary of Hyuuga Neji's death. "He will never be forgotten – a beautiful symbol of those who carry the will of Fire!"

"Ha, it's so nice to have our budgets raised again. Remind me to thank _zashiki-warashi_ for helping us," Shikamaru said offhandedly as he calculated the new ledger, piles of gold and paper notes sitting abundantly by his hand.

"You're lucky that Akamaru was on the rescue mission with us, kid. A _zashiki-warashi _blessed him as a pup, you know," a matter of fact Kiba had informed an injured child who had been buried under a mudslide before the ninja dog had sniffed and dug him up.

"I have the blessing of a _zashiki-warashi,_ dattebayo!" Naruto had thrown back valiantly in response to a frustrated ninja who'd demanded as to why Naruto didn't even have a scratch despite being shot at by flaming projectiles during a fairly one-sided battle. Sakura gave him that same glare Ino had been awarded with earlier before proceeding to punch the daylights out of both the enemy and Naruto.

It pissed him off that pretty much everyone knew who or what the _zashiki-warashi _was, especially since this elusive spirit-thing was turning up everywhere and turning everything into a success like that legendary king with the touch of gold he'd heard about in bedtime stories his mother used to tell him. Something as obvious as that should've been discovered and concluded with already by someone with Sasuke's perceived caliber, but all he could see ahead of him was dark, dark ignorance and no clear answers within his grasp. It bothered him to no end especially since it also proved to him that he still wasn't as trusted as a generic chuunin in terms of the knowledge hierarchy the Hokage had built up. His efforts to find his own answers simply by observing quietly in the background only amounted to more frustration and empty hands, so he resorted to talking to the two biggest blabbermouths he knew (both coincidentally blonde).

"Naruto. What's the _zashiki-warashi_ everyone's talking about," Sasuke stated emotionlessly one day when he couldn't take being in the dark anymore after hearing the youngest Sarutobi _brat_ talk about the spirit (of all people, why the most annoying Naruto-wannabe!), his words falling from his tongue reluctantly and failing to put the questioning intonation grammatically required for inquiries.

"Eh?" his teammate looked at him confusedly. "You don't know?"

A vein by the Uchiha's temple throbbed.

"She's Konoha's greatest weapon!" Naruto exclaimed proudly, oblivious to the increasing tension. "We're doing really fantastic because she's been helping us. We have brand new gear in the ANBU and Academy armories, less rationing in the general villages, and I think Granny Tsunade's gambling debts have been paid off by double because of her! She's the best, dattebayo!"

"… And she is…?" Sasuke trailed off suggestively, hoping that he wouldn't have to explicitly make Naruto aware that he didn't know anything about this mysterious _zashiki-warashi_.

"Yeah," Naruto agreed, thinking that Sasuke had seconded the notion that 'she was the best.' He opened his mouth again, causing Sasuke's hopes to rise when he recognized that Naruto was about to say a person's name fondly…

And then a gloved fist came from nowhere and Naruto found himself too occupied to reveal anything that Sasuke anticipated.

"Stop wasting time, you idiot! We're going to be late!"

Never before had Sakura aggravated Sasuke so much as in that one moment; he felt his eyes involuntarily flicker blood red with annoyance before he quickly spun on his heel and left his two teammates before he activated anything more serious than his Sharingan. He promised himself to punish Naruto for his incompetence later when they sparred in the training fields however, and then proceeded to vent at least half of his impatience on some unsuspecting and airheaded jounin.

And then he asked his last resort, his former fangirl.

"Oh, Sasuke-kun, it's great to see you here!" Ino flounced about her flower shop happily, watering a few blossoms with a spray bottle as she darted away from him. She had changed since her Academy days and so had he; no longer did she spend her time staring at his beautiful face and waxing poetry about his 'deep, endless eyes' and 'sharply cut jawline that reminded one of a classical statue.' It seemed that flowers had become her distraction and occupation during his absence and she barely fluttered her lashes at him once as he entered. Professionalism clearly sank in, for she acted as if it were completely normal for Uchiha Sasuke to stop by the florist's.

"Is there anything you need right now?" she asked him absentmindedly. "I'm going to close shop in ten minutes because I've got a mission with Hinata-chan."

He stood awkwardly by the counter, leaning away from some passion flowers that teetered by his elbow. The scent of blossoming flowers almost suffocated his sensitive nose as it was unaccustomed to such a cloyingly sweet odor and the smell of earth felt out of place inside. Watching her organize and wipe away stray soil made him feel uncomfortable – he'd never really had a conversation with Ino other than trying to tell her that he didn't like her that way, and the fact that her interest in him had waned almost completely didn't boost his confidence either. He realized he hadn't planned out how the conversation would go and prayed that small talk would eventually get her big mouth to spill the information he needed.

"Ah," he acknowledged dumbly with an incline of his head. "What kind of mission is it?"

This caught the blonde girl's attention, as Uchiha Sasuke never really showed any interest in anything that didn't directly involve himself. As a master of psychology and observing people, Ino was certain that he wanted something from her, probably information or a favor. Though one would think he was an excellent liar, she saw through him clearly with his every fidget and evasion of eye contact. In fact, he looked so discomfited without even speaking a single deceptive word that she almost laughed at him. Sasuke, the epitome of shinobi values, was as transparent as glass, as easy to read as…

"Hinata-chan!"

The bell on the door jingled merrily as a third person entered the shop, a gentle breeze following in and ruffling the petals of every bloom. The girl had long hair that was uncharacteristically tied back behind her, giving the illusion that she had returned to the old bobbed cut of hair she'd had as a child, and her rounded cheeks were tinged a deep red as if she had exerted herself a bit too much.

"A-ah, Ino-chan…" she stammered. "A-am I interrupting s-something?"

There was something ethereal about her, with the ivory skin that flushed pink which reminded him of his mother's prized water lilies, contrasting hair so dark that it reflected blue light, large pearly eyes that reminded him of innocent fairies from legends. If it weren't for her earthly stuttering, he would've mistaken her for some kind of mythological creature –

"No, no, no, Hinata-chan. Sasuke-kun just wanted to ask about some flowers he was going to buy for his mother's birthday. I was going to suggest the traditional chrysanthemums but there are many other choices…"

Ino trailed off before her eyes widened as if she had just recalled something of importance.

"Dammit, I just remembered that my mom wanted me to pick up some sugar before I leave with you on that retrieval mission," she muttered furiously. "Ah, Hinata-chan, can you help Sasuke-kun with his order while I run to the store quickly? I believe in your knowledge and taste in flowers! And I know you'll choose something special enough for him like you always do!"

With that, the door opened and shut again as a whirlwind of blonde hair disappeared into the distance, leaving behind two suddenly very quiet and awkward people attempting to evade each other's gazes. They were quite unsuccessful with this particular endeavor, especially since constantly wandering eyes were bound to meet at some point.

He had no idea why Ino felt the need to lie for him but he was pleased enough at her meddling for once. Pride still thankfully intact, Sasuke wondered if perhaps it would be easier to pry the words from the Hyuuga girl using intimidation instead of conversational skill, the latter of which he reluctantly admitted he lacked.

"Um…" she attempted to string together coherent words with someone she had never before talked with. "W-was there any flower in particular you wanted to give to your mother?"

Unintentionally, his usual glare sharpened as he sardonically replied, "Not really. Why else would I be asking Ino for suggestions?"

She shrank away, unaccustomed to his naturally sour presence. "Then is th-there any message you'd want to t-tell her?"

He considered her for a moment, somehow forgetting temporarily that he had wanted to interrogate the girl about _zashiki-warashi_, as his mother's birthday really was nearing. "Thank you. And, I guess goodbye."

She smiled softly as if remembering something. "When my mother passed, I wanted to tell her the same thing. Father always put traditional white chrysanthemums on her headstone but she never liked the sobriety the contrast between white flowers and stone made her feel… So I planted bluebells and sweet peas nearby because she loved blue so much."

Moving deftly behind the counter and grabbing a ladder as if she were accustomed to working Ino's flower shop, Hyuuga Hinata climbed with surprising confidence and determination to a high-shelf where she carefully hugged a small pot of blue flowers to her chest before stumbling down onto the ground again. "These are bluebells, meaning gratitude. And then there are sweet peas, which represent farewell." She set another small pot of paler flowers onto the counter and then continued without a single stutter. "If you don't mind, you can use those instead of white flowers."

"Oh." He struggled to say something with a semblance of cleverness or even appreciation for her considerateness, but his mouth couldn't shape the words and his mind couldn't form any. "That's fine."

He took out his wallet and flipped out a few coins carelessly, knowing that he'd overpaid but resistant to the fact that he'd look utterly stupid counting out the exact price and then demanding for her to explain what the hell _zashiki-warashi_ was.

Gathering as many social skills he possessed into his figurative palm – the field of sociability was sparse in him, indeed – he grunted out a soft yet forced out "thank you" in the hopes that this would allow him to integrate into a topic he was more eager to talk about, such as the _zashiki-warashi. _Keeping in mind that eye contact and physical proximity would probably help with his goal, he stepped a bit closer to her.

"Hyuuga – "

The door burst open as he spoke her name, the bells ringing obnoxiously when Ino sauntered in with an arm full of bags.

"I bought more than just sugar," she said cheerfully. "Maybe we can just have a nice cup of tea before we leave for the mission. I'm sure Tsunade won't bother us if we're half an hour late for our mission…"

She noticed the blue flowers sitting innocuously on the counter while her dark haired customer stood suspiciously close to Hinata and a mischievous smile stretched onto her face.

"Hinata-chan, these are so adorable! I'm sure that Sasuke-kun appreciates them very much," she squealed excitedly. "Sasuke-kun, be glad that you were lucky enough to have Konoha's _zashiki-warashi _choose your mother's flowers for you! They've now been blessed and diamonds are probably going to drop out of them now."

Sasuke froze as he looked at the plants he'd bought and the now cherry-red Hyuuga next to him. Her blush elevated until she looked like she was naturally red all the time and her head kept ducking after stealing shy, uncertain glances at him, like a curious little spirit or fairy.

"I-Ino-chan, that was supposed to be s-s-secret!" she cried with embarrassment staining her cheeks and tone. "Um… Sasuke-san, p-please don't tell anyone else what Ino-chan said!"

Frowning, he glared at the nonchalant-looking Ino. "Explain, Yamanaka."

Ino giggled slightly nervously, realizing then that she had indeed just broken a law decreed by the Hokage; she had just informed a non-clearance person of a supposedly very confidential village secret, one that was kept in order to prevent catastrophe and war over a particular resource. But it was also the worst-kept secret that was kept within the village, as almost everyone knew of the existence of the _zashiki-warashi_ even if they didn't necessarily match the spirit to an actual human face. She was sure that Sasuke was simply curious and not suddenly about to usurp the title of Hokage or terrorize the Leaf, so she proceeded with her explanation easily enough though Hinata looked like a kettle boiling over as Ino continued with the story from the beginning.

"Hinata-chan here is our most powerful weapon. We haven't found any limit to her ability yet, but it seems that it's all unintentional," Ino told him. "She's really our _zashiki-warashi_. Ever since we realized she could do it, good fortune kept falling right into our laps."

Sasuke nodded, but still didn't understand completely. "So, what does she do?" Scenarios from the rumors he'd heard years before circulated through his brain. He remembered thinking that it couldn't possibly be another jinchuuriki or time-manipulator, but if she really was the Leaf's top resource then…

"She has the figurative touch of gold," the blonde girl replied, the answer completely unexpected. "Anything that catches her eye apparently has hidden value.

"It first happened when I took her shopping, actually. I saw this really cute bracelet that Hinata-chan would've looked so cute in, but she was taken with this ugly, gaudy piece of crap the salesman called a necklace. Anyway, he practically chucked it at her for free and I tried so hard for her to get rid of it! The rhinestones were too flashy and the chain was obviously plastic…"

Ino looked like she was about to burst in exasperation towards Hinata's questionable taste while ignoring the still incredibly rosy face of her friend before realizing that Sasuke's patience was already being tested by this seemingly impertinent anecdote.

"But then we were attacked by ninja from Kirigakure, you know, the village with all that acid. They sprayed it on us but we managed to dodge it, for the most part. Hinata's crappy new necklace melted off into bits of plastic and aluminum but in the middle of that puddle was a giant _diamond._"

She flourished to embellish that dramatic revelation.

"So apparently, it was a genuine diamond – we got it checked by jewelers. And it was so big that it's actually incredibly valuable. We gave it to Tsunade-sama to boost our mission funds. Before Hinata showed up with the diamond, we were actually running really low in the treasury – ask Shikamaru-kun, he's been forced to do all the accounting! But it doubled the amount we already had after we sold it to the Daimyo.

"At first we thought this whole thing was a weird fluke that happened, just luck or Hinata's Byakugan catching something different in that butt ugly necklace. But when we asked other Hyuuga to identify that same necklace from dozens of replicas, no one succeeded in telling the difference. And then she did it again with an old kimono a shop was trying to get rid of! It was actually one of Uzumaki Mito's robes from at least a hundred years ago… And then, if you think about it, Sasuke-kun – "

Hinata squeaked in embarrassment before scurrying outside, hiding her face from Ino and Sasuke.

Ino frowned when she saw Hinata leave, wondering if perhaps she shouldn't have spilled that story to Sasuke. She made to follow her friend but the Uchiha boy grasped at her forearm tightly, preventing her escape.

"Continue."

She couldn't stop her retelling of the story now. If there was anything Ino was absolutely confident in, it was her own set of storytelling skills. Beauty would fade and bodies would rot, but her stories would remain, she always told herself. Even if everyone else thought she was just a shallow, gossiping airhead, she was satisfied that at least the entire village ran on her stories and information. She was the secret propaganda specialist in the village, really. Planting ideas in people's heads seemed like an underhanded, manipulative move but it was a formidable and underestimated weapon; she was a ninja before all, so what was a bit of sneaky craftiness? It gave her hidden power over others who would otherwise be too drastic an enemy to tangle with, like the clueless ninja before her. Sasuke looked like he was hooked, his eyes slightly wide with thinly veiled curiosity. She was rather pleased with his interest, but knew that she couldn't show any ulterior motives under her shallow mask so she tapped her chin innocuously as if in the middle of thinking.

"Well, Sasuke-kun. It turns out that if you think about it really hard her ability doesn't only work with material things… She was, if you recall, the first one to believe in that idiot Naruto – look where he is now! Tsunade-sama's most trusted right hand man and her main candidate as successor! And she'd always believed in him since the beginning when he was only a brat with crappy test scores and drinking sour milk. I'm really impressed with that one, actually.

"But then there's Neji-kun – her cousin, who died in the war. Everyone thought he was a snotty, stuck up rich kid with emotional problems, especially during our first chuunin exam when he almost killed poor Hinata-chan, but now he's a village hero and martyr and all that symbolic stuff because she never stopped believing in him."

She let him absorb her words when she noticed the thoughtful glaze in his eyes.

"Aren't those all coincidences?" Sasuke asked after a minute pause. He seemed to be pondering something inside. "I thought Naruto was different too and Neji's an exceptional anomaly in the Hyuuga family anyway."

Slyly smiling, Ino decided to prod at him a bit more. "Well, she's the one who picked Akamaru – who was the runt of his litter – for Kiba, too. I guess it's just objective _special_ness that she finds in everything. She's part of the Rookie Nine and we're the best graduating class this decade and we've all had interactions with her, gotten approved. Eh, except for you, Sasuke-kun. You've never even had a full conversation with her, have you? I know you're curious."

"… Not really," Sasuke said reluctantly. It burned his pride somehow that he remained unnoticed and 'unblessed' by someone who treated everyone kindly. The fact that she seemed to attract only the best and all but disregarded him made him feel a bit… impotent.

"Don't worry, Sasuke-kun! I'm sure that you'll get paired with her on one of those retrieval missions. Tsunade-sama's been sending her to antique stores and mines all over Fire Country and it can be a bit dangerous out there. But I guess you don't really care for C-ranked missions anyway."

"Hn." He didn't feel too talkative at the moment, especially after this revelation sank in. He still had his doubts about the Hyuuga. He'd always thought himself exceptional and quite frankly, _the utter best _of what life was offering, especially since his brother and family weren't there anymore. But this Hyuuga girl hadn't seen what he and other people had seen in himself and with all this overwhelming proof of her being a damned treasure-magnet, Sasuke couldn't help but feel uncharacteristically insecure. It slightly _hurt _that she didn't notice him even when he was just the top Rookie of his year up until now as a legend to be written in shinobi history forever, but the stinging was replaced with a burning annoyance. What did Naruto and Akamaru and an ugly necklace have that he didn't? Yes, she was probably just a fraud or a completely defective treasure-seeker.

"Well, goodbye for now Sasuke-kun! I have to go find Hinata-chan now before we miss the mission completely!" the blonde girl called sweetly, sweeping him out the door carefully before locking up the store. She hid a sadistic grin when she caught his slightly troubled face. "Don't brood too much; the flowers will wilt."

Sasuke watched the blonde skip off with a certain flair to every step, as if she were immensely satisfied by something, before setting off to his mother's grave to deposit his new offering. He frowned as he came to the same conclusion as before: why didn't Hyuuga Hinata ever interact with him? Though he was still a bit skeptical about her talents, he also couldn't help but wonder. He was clearly superior to many she associated with and he was sure it wasn't just his ego making excuses. Gifted with looks, talent, and even wealth, he found himself to be of considerable worth. There were so many things they had in common too, now that he thought about it. So how was it that she never considered him in any way besides as an insignificant stranger?

Eventually, he made it to the Uchiha cemetery where his blood and tears lay long buried but never forgotten. His family gravestones were fenced off a bit due to their status as the leading branch, with his parents' headstones freshly cleaned and dusted while his brother's new and relatively untouched by weathering. There were a few white chrysanthemums scattered around a few other Uchiha graves and he remembered that Hinata had said her mother didn't like the bleak contrast grey stone made with those snowy petals. Looking among the stones, he realized that it was like something had leached the colors and life from the fallen Uchiha and all that remained was uncolored death and grief instead of the bold and brilliant shades of glory and flames that always accompanied the legends that the Uchiha always were. The empty monochrome that even swallowed the golden sun among the tombstones was something he noticed that he didn't especially like, but the nearly forgotten splash of blue in his arms was like a soothing balm over sore eyes accustomed to black and red.

Wordlessly, he placed his pots of bluebells and sweet peas before the marker carved for Uchiha Mikoto. The wind whispered through his hair lovingly and he remembered how his mother used to rub his head when he got tired and collapsed into her lap for a nap. The shifting air carried away the blank sterility he'd breathed before and he could smell something familiar and nostalgic, something he'd always attributed to his mother in his scant memories – the scent of something flowery – and suddenly he felt like she was next to him again with that gentle smile and soothing voice.

His eyes and nose prickled uncomfortably with a foreign feeling and he wasn't sure if he wanted to sneeze or yawn. Instead, saltwater traced over a smiling pair lips rather than the bloody tears his eyes so often shed and it felt like he was home again, for once in these past years…

Perhaps Hinata wasn't a complete fake then, he conceded as the wind dried his stiff face. It felt like she'd given him something more valuable than a diamond or even those blessings everyone else seemed to have. He couldn't pinpoint why exactly he sensed something just _different_, like coming upon a windfall or just noticing the small things in life that were there to remind you that it was worth living and suffering. Maybe she found other people treasure, but she'd given him a part of herself that was now something he called his.

Sighing, he turned his face to the sky and really breathed for the first time in many years. The air was crisp and cold but his heart was warmer than it had ever been and his pulse was calm. Instead of the hollow emptiness and intermittent screams he heard in his mind, his ears just took in the light chirping of the swallows and the soft whispering of the leaves.

And then a throb in his temple made him remember that he'd just admitted that the Hyuuga girl wasn't a sham after all; he was still a bit annoyed that she hadn't deemed him worthy and now that he had let himself be convinced that she did indeed sense the valuableness in everything, he was left once again feeling more than a tad insulted that she never looked his way ever, even since the beginning.

No matter, he thought resolutely. His life was always about proving himself and now that he'd proved himself to his brother, his village, and his friends, he supposed it was only right to prove himself again to a girl.

He would make her acknowledge him.


	3. Circles

They never looked at each other. It was almost comically impossible, but of course those two would have accomplished this.

They were exactly 180 degrees apart from each other at all times.

Just as she entered the grocery store hoping to find freshly baked cinnamon rolls, he would be in the midst of sneaking out furtively, trying to avoid fussy old women and loud fangirls, all the while clutching a bag of fresh tomatoes.

As she practiced walking up trees and climbing onto the uppermost branches, he happened to be the one who used the same cluster of trees for target practice.

She sat to Naruto's left at Rookie 9 reunions while he sat to the blond idiot's right.

They lived in their little circles of life, orbiting the same people and the same things, until one day they rotated enough so that they looked and saw each other, like gazing into a mirror and finally finding yourself in a reflection.

Ino snorted. Thank the gods that the Earth was round. Otherwise they would've continued walking in opposite directions forever.


	4. Indra Had a Lover

Indra had a lover, according to Narutopedia.

Five senses until the beginning.

0-0-0-0-0-0-

_Beautiful red surrounded her and she remembered that it was his favorite color; his eyes were always especially content whenever he saw her dressed in scarlet robes or blushing a subtle shade of rose. A teasing smile raked across her face as she contemplated over the fact that even their bed was adorned in red silk. She had learned to love the color just as she learned to love many things about him, and she was glad to see that the last thing her eyes caught were his glimmering crimson ones, a look of triumph glowing in them, even as she lay limp on the hard ground watching drenched in her own red._

She wasn't quite sure what she'd dreamt of, but the tears lingering between her eyelids foretold of tragedy or something unhappy. And yet, her heart felt lighter than it had in years, a smile threatening to break the surface of the stagnant saltwater.

It was the strangest feeling, like remembering something long forgotten.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

_His back was broad and strong, she noticed. He was a great man, with strength unparalleled and a will stronger than any steel. The fabrics and crest emblazoned across his body bespoke of nobility, his sword signifying his status as a warrior. His very posture was elegant and warlike, determined and admirably ambitious – she, just like many others, admired him deeply, for to them he was almost a God._

_But as she watched him tread upon a path leading away from his father, his brother, his home – _her_ – she found herself trying to swallow the stifling bitterness in her throat. If he were truly a God, he was a lonely one._

The avenue she found herself in was not unfamiliar; her friends had brought her to a quaint little shop just weeks before and she'd fallen in love with their desserts though she only tried her favorite cinnamon buns, as she was always the most cautious and reserved character in her group.

Feeling rather adventurous that moment, she ordered something she'd never contemplated trying before – a cup of bittersweet chocolate mousse. She took the spoon slowly and scooped up the smallest sliver, inhaling the seductive scent of the culinary masterpiece slightly, before she let the chocolate melt on her tongue. It was smooth and spread in her mouth easily, but the resounding bitterness that lingered in her throat surprised her in ways she did not expect.

She'd always believed herself to be an incorrigible sweet-tooth but that bittersweet aftertaste strangely appealed to her. It was familiar, despite the fact that she hardly ever ate anything bitter, save for the teas her father favored. The remaining mousse was not consumed quickly, but to be taken back for later consumption, carefully stowed away into a little plastic container and wrapped with fancy paper.

The entire walk back to her home, she felt the sharp flavors of the mousse swirling on her tongue, her tastes accommodating to the bitterness easily.

0-0-0-0-0-0-0

_Trees and lovely blooms lined the garden tastefully, a small koi pond merrily sparkling under the calm spring sunshine. There was a strong scent of peonies and orchids and other flowers, but there was something else that dominated her nose, something wonderfully subtle but strong. It calmed her and reminded her of her childhood, of safety, of comfort and warmth._

_Looking down at her lap, she sighed fondly as she stroked away the silent tears of the man whose head rested so innocently against her. The sting in her heart receded when he turned to look at her from his supine position, a small smile that brightened his dark eyes radiating on his noble face._

Walking past her favorite bakery, she stopped to smell the fragrances of sugar, bread, and home wafting through the air like beloved perfumes. She caught the thread of an aroma and its familiarity struck her nearly senseless with nostalgia. It was a soothing scent, one that made her feel undeniably safe and at home, but she even as she sought to pinpoint its origins, she could not remember why it made her so content.

0-0-0-0-0-0

He stands intimidatingly by his teammate, a familiar scowl – where had she seen that before, she wonders, for she was never close to this man in her childhood – decorating his pale, perfect face. His lips are tugged down and so are his brows, signifying his annoyance with Naruto's antics. Hands in his pockets, he seems more standoffish than she would like to associate with, but Naruto, his self-proclaimed brother, darts forward to catch her hand and the jubilant boy eagerly drags her to the man she thinks she should know but can't quite remember.

"Uchiha Sasuke," he says offhandedly, without looking into her face at all. His voice smoothly rolls over the silence dominatingly, like silk tightly wrapping over in a cocoon, and its timbre electrocutes her because she knows she never really paid attention to his voice before but something about it seems infinitely familiar…

Her own mouth opens to say that she knew who he was and that as his classmate from the Academy, she was no stranger to him either, but her tongue and lips instead fold into a pattern they never have before in this lifetime. "Indra…"

He stiffens and turns, his dark eyes finally finding a path leading towards her instead of away. Something shifts in his impersonal gaze, like he's remembered something he didn't know he'd forgotten, and the ghost of a smile echoes across his face, finally wiping away the tears that flowed invisibly there.

His molten, silky voice caresses her name in response.

_He and his brother stood in that garden, wide grins on both of their faces. She liked that about them, but was almost too shy to make eye contact with the two youths, both intimidatingly bright in their own respective manners._

_Asura, she knew, was a piece of sunshine come to earth. Light almost radiated from his every artless grin and his hair spiked peculiarly so that it seemed to imitate the sharper edges of the sun. _

_Indra was something harder to describe. He was dark and he was bright and she was almost blinded by him. Perhaps, if she were more poetic, she would say he was like a star glimmering in the night sky._

_His beautifully smooth voice creased over the air and led her from her blind timidity over to both brothers, after all. _


	5. Eyes

-0-0-0-0-0

The rain poured unceasingly outside, tears of a weeping child mingling with the vestiges of lighting from a celestial temper tantrum. Sounds of water hitting the ground mercilessly struck her as familiar – perhaps it was the faint memory of the pattering made by her bare feet as she ran across cold bamboo floors in her family dojo, she mused absently, or even the dexterous strikes she was taught and imitated while under her father's strict tutelage. Her pale eyes blurred with a hint of cloud, but when she raised her fingers almost dutifully to the tender skin of her face, she realized that her cheeks were chilled and dry.

Her voice forced itself into an unaccustomed timbre as she felt her throat cough a bitter laugh, soaked in her own blood and tears she couldn't seem to force out. It was strange that she, on the very precipice of almost certain death would begin to reminiscence of her childhood, a time in her short life that scarcely bore witness to any degree of true happiness. Why didn't she think more of happier times, the more recent ones consisting of her father's nods of approval, Neji's gentle smiles, and Naruto's sunny laughter? Too tired to berate herself for her foolishness, she sighed and drew her soggy jacket closer to her body before she remembered that she did not need to rely on her own pitiful sources of heat at that moment. Cold and damp inside the stony walls of some mossy cave just barely hidden in the mountains from prying eyes, she crept towards the smoky fire with her hands outstretched and seeking the flames' warmth cautiously as if her every movement might catch the sight of a fearsome predator.

Instinctively, she scanned the perimeter for any pursuers she knew were likely to follow her bloody trails she left behind in her haste to escape before huffing in exhaustion and relief when she realized that none were within her ten kilometer range.

There was the sound of something scraping against stone and she stiffened once more, believing immediately that there was some undetectable intruder that she'd somehow missed with that lone yet careless search.

A weak hiss from just beside her made her heart spring from its place in her chest, another sigh released when she realized that her companion was the only shinobi in the vicinity and had regained consciousness. His dark eyes flickered about as if anticipating an attack, his muscles accordingly tensed to counter before he winced at the searing pain she was certain he felt coursing everywhere. She knew he felt terribly feeble but his indomitable and completely immovable pride wouldn't allow for anyone to aid him, so she patiently if not reluctantly, watched him fight his soreness and stretch into a proper sitting posture.

"Hyuuga," he rasped, not caring about anything but that which concerned their joint mission. "What happened?"

Knowing that he wouldn't like for her to insert euphemisms or other hindrances in her speech, she gently pressed him down with her palm, praying that he wouldn't tear open his wounds any further. "The Amaterasu succeeded in destroying half of them, but at the price of your left eye." The flesh under her hand contracted furiously. Rage simmered beneath the bloodied chest of the remaining Uchiha, who now knew that his right eye was the last of its kind. Yet under all of his frustrations and righteous fury, she could see a hint of a broken man, one who lived only for and by his bloodline and was now in danger of losing it all. "Don't activate your Sharingan, Uchiha-san."

His eyes, one a lifeless coal and the other an ember amidst a flame, were weeping blood again. The heat from his gaze simmered down when she uttered his surname, a polite reminder of the biggest piece of his identity.

She brushed a pale hand delicately across his face to wipe away the crimson tears, smiling faintly when she realized that he actually listened to her request.

"Can you fix it?" he demanded in that coldly commanding manner of his, ignoring her shaking limbs and drawn face. His words indicated hope but his heart beat no faster in faith of her ability to restore his sight. She knew because her hand still laid upon his chest.

She stood still.

She understood why she was asked to give back his vision, to heal him. It was her assigned duty to him, after all, and she comprehended duty far more than most gave her credit for. Like him, her life had been strongly molded and defined by her blood and heritage. Even when she was drowning in her own miserable pools of blood and limping with a shattered leg, down to the final dredges of chakra without a single weapon left, she was expected to adhere the rest of resources to keeping this man – someone who would forevermore be of more value to this world, whether he be dead or alive – breathing and functioning, at whatever cost required of her. She would if she could, she knew, but as she looked over his blank left eye, she knew that not even Tsunade could return his sight to him. He was to be blind in that eye for the rest of his life.

A person with a single Sharingan was still valuable, like Kakashi-sensei back at home, but an Uchiha with a blind eye was severely weakened. He'd been reliant on his bloodline limits for most of his life and hadn't the time to adjust to his weakened depth perceptions and orientations without his Sharingan; she knew that they would both die if he didn't regain the usage of both eyes, even if one was no longer capable of summoning swirls of crimson and black.

Her left hand shook as she clenched her fist above his heart.

"They're coming," she said plainly, without replying to his plea.

Almost too clinically, she observed herself with a detached manner. A broken rib or two, a shattered leg that was probably incapable of movement for weeks if not months, a crushed right hand, and a dying reservoir of chakra. Her weapons pouch was the only thing emptier except perhaps her dwindling hopes that they would both survive and return to Konoha, where she would see her father's approving nods, Neji's gentle smile, and Naruto's sunny laughter.

It wouldn't really matter, she thought to herself objectively. The Byakugan was what the Cloud wanted after all; they killed her uncle, ruined Neji's childhood, and instilled within her an almost inconsolable fear of them, all in the name of the sacred "white eye." The Sharingan, if landed in their hands, would be an unwarranted strike against the Leaf and an undeserved reward for the Cloud's treachery. She was a deciding liability in this wholly unfair battle against those enemy ninja, the main factor that would bring a crippling loss to her beloved home village and dishonor to her clan if she failed this mission. Uchiha Sasuke was always going to be the survivor, no matter the circumstances, and he could easily defeat fleets of these soldiers if only he had the use of both eyes. She refused to let her heritage, no matter how bitter she felt about the very blood flowing through her noble veins, fall into wretched hands and abused. He was the most capable warrior in Konoha, ultimately, and there was thus no safer place than being under his protection. It was pitifully easy to see the answer that she had been originally attempting to weave her thoughts away from.

Her left hand's fingers delicately stroked his chest, pressing in synchronization with his calm heartbeat, before straying to his lightly cut arms.

"What are you doing?" he interrogated, exhaustion and her butterfly touches overcoming his consciousness.

She smiled vaguely, the pearly white of her teeth slightly stained with a solemn scarlet like an uchiwa fan. "Uchiha-san, don't worry. I can fix you."

He blinked uncertainly, his lone eye searching her usually easily read face for an answer he could be satisfied with. Her suppressing his chakra points were not required for her healing; he knew quite well from his experiencing her gentle mending hundreds of times before. There was definitely something wrong, what was left of his logic warned him, but he could only allow himself to feel the aftereffects of losing his eye. His mind swirled in a dangerous vertigo and he found himself incapable of thinking as logically as he could before, so he uncharacteristically left his actions to be dictated by his instinct… Every fiber of his tired being called for him to trust this girl, his partner, because everything she was reminded him of his clan and what he fought for.

"Close your eyes," she gently soothed. "It'll be done soon."

Obligingly, he let himself drift into a thin darkness, putting all his rarely given and scarce faith within this kunoichi.

0-0-0-0-0-

When he awoke, his limbs were stiff with sleep but painless as if all his sustained injuries had disappeared. It was a strange yet refreshing sensation that trickled throughout his body like the lightning chakra that made him so lethal. He tested his arms and legs, flexing to rid them of any lingering cramps, and then he bolted upwards when he remembered that he'd lost one of his precious eyes and fallen asleep to the pacifying voice of his Hyuuga partner as she promised him continuously in softly chanted mantras that she would fix him.

Hesitatingly, he blinked and wiped away any remnants of crusted blood from his amended eyes.

The cave only leaked a single ray of light, but his left eye burned from it unexpectedly. Though he was inordinately glad that the Hyuuga girl had restored that eye, he remained irritated that he had to wait for it to fully readjust – did she not remember that if he did not fight, both of them would perish at the hands of cannon fodder Cloud shinobi?

His annoyance was only supplemented by the fact that he did not sense her presence in the cave with him. She obviously hadn't taken her duties seriously enough, not even greeting him or ensuring his condition as he emerged from his feverish slumber. How was she even a healer, if she dared to leave her patient's side when they needed her most?

He stumbled onto his feet, stretching a few more times to reheat his muscles suitably. The sting in his left eye receded thankfully, so he decided to go out again and find her. As the foolish girl was probably gallivanting about in enemy territory, he would have to go and retrieve her before she got herself killed.

A hoarse cry erupted into the silent air some distance away, causing a curse to fall from his lips as his legs swiftly sprinted towards the familiar voice faster. Unsheathing his sword with a single movement, he prepared for battle against the remaining Cloud pursuers who were undoubtedly after his partner. Branches rebounded under the forces of his jumps as he forced himself to increase his speed, hoping somewhere in his darkened heart that she was still alive. Darting across the trees, he finally came upon her in a small clearing, where she lay helplessly on the forest floor with her hair tossed about and even a few skeins of black strewn several feet away from her. A kunai was pointed at her bare throat, one man tying her up with coarse rope as another watched rivulets of blood emerged from somewhere on her pale but heavily bruised face.

Wordlessly, he sliced several necks of the men surrounding her. Unflinching at the sight of gore and blood now staining the rest of his garments and weapon, he impaled the one threatening her life with a simple push before decapitating the one attempting to chain her. His work was complete within seconds, slicing and cutting easily men surrounding him even if they were behind him or concealed, but he did not rejoice at his swift victory; his attention was on the girl lying helplessly on the ground, unmoving.

"Y-you monster," spat a dying man by his feet bitterly. "Your eyes…"

Uchiha Sasuke ignored the comment he felt was almost overused, stepping on the man carelessly, before stooping by his seemingly unconscious partner. Her injuries seemed graver than he had expected and there was almost too much blood on her skin instead of under, but he forced his pulse to slow its tempo because there was no way this idiotic girl would die as long as she was his partner.

Using his finest strain of lightning chakra, he imitated her earlier movements and placed his hand on her still chest, tapping a tattoo that matched his own heartbeat onto her flesh.

Minutes passed with no sign of either her return to life or his surrender. But he did not feel the need to stop, especially because her white skin was blooming with red flowers that reminded him of something irrevocably him and his.

"Hyuuga," he sternly whispered to the breeze sifting through her cut strands of hair. "Wake up."

But she didn't.

He didn't stop. His right hand ached from inhibiting so much lightning chakra in such fine grains to prevent lethal consequences, but he still didn't cease his attempts to revive the girl.

"You're a monster," the same dying man uttered miserably. "You're –"

With his left hand, he let his sword cleave a fatal line onto the man's neck, a fountain of blood pouring out in return. Sickened by the dirtiness of his victims' blood, he wiped his blade quickly on the grass by him, all the while maintaining the weak but steady stream of electricity to his partner's chest.

"Hyuuga, you better get up. You're stronger than this," he warned, a wisp of temper entering his words as his Sharingan involuntarily activated.

A throb of pain shot through his skull, cutting off his contact to her abruptly but not before sending a final shock that was more powerful in magnitude than the others.

He clutched at his left eye in pain, a thread of chakra contracting in his head that he'd never felt before. He wondered what the stupid girl had done to repair his eye, if she had made some mistake, but then he felt something ridging up by his hand.

"Hyuuga," he groaned in agony as his head pulsated uncomfortably before a bright light enveloped his vision. He could suddenly see glowing objects everywhere about him, a small flame even flickering where her abdomen was.

Impulsively, he brought his sword up to sheathe it before he succumbed to the pain and stabbed himself but his gaze caught on the smooth reflective surface of the metal when he saw something both foreign and enchantingly familiar glimmering.

At that same moment, he heard a choking, gasping sound by his side. Forgetting about his own pain temporarily, he twisted his head to see if she were really and truly still in existence in this world but he found himself instead a captive audience at the very thing that he'd seen on his blade.

Protruding veins leached from the pale but eerily beautiful lavender eye, lightly defined pupils hinted on the slightly dewy surface.

It, much like his own prized Sharingan, was the most precious and defining attribute of a prestigious and long-lived clan.

People lived and killed for such power it offered, as many have for his own bloodline limit.

It was hers.

The Byakugan.

He raised a hand to her bloodied face, gently caressing away the dark hair obscuring her left eye.

A steady stream of crimson trickled down her cheeks and he followed it upwards dutifully, though he already knew what was to come.

"You stupid girl," he muttered.

What greeted him was not the gentle, moon-kissed eye that always smiled at him delicately, but an empty socket bereft of its original charge.


	6. Valentines Days

Valentine's Days

Their first Valentine's Day wasn't actually spent together. He was hiding, fast asleep and hopefully safe from his pursuers, in the tree she always ate lunch under while she pondered anxiously about whether or not she should hand over her homemade chocolates to Naruto.

Their second Valentine's Day consisted of a more substantial meeting, though it was more like they shared the same oxygen in the nurse's office rather than anything more emotional. She'd fainted after she finally managed to shyly hand over her box of fresh homemade chocolates to Naruto, who had smiled so brightly that her eyes blurred from his dazzling grin. He had been the one she'd fallen onto as he waited for their classroom doorway to clear.

Their third Valentine's Day was another step forward in the right direction, literally. He was turning the corner while she had been about to do the same, resulting in an awkward collision and the both of them intertwined with each other on the floor. She'd run off with a pair of flaming cheeks without a glance back and he stared at the neatly wrapped box that had his name and a neatly scrawled "thank you" lying on his chest. They were thoughtfully bittersweet and homemade.

Their fourth Valentine's Day landed on a Sunday. There wasn't any class and they wouldn't have expected to see each other outside of school, but their mutual friends had gone and set up a group date. Sakura sat next to him, eagerly hoping to share her sugary strawberry chocolate parfait with him, but he'd already begun to take a spoonful of the bittersweet torte the girl across from him had ordered. All he remembered from that Sunday was a shy but genuinely smile and a pair of pleased pink cheeks.

Their fifth Valentine's Day was the first they spent away from the others. She had turned to her neighbor to ask for an extra pencil – she'd accidentally broken her own – and she was utterly surprised to see that familiar pair of dark eyes and faintly quirked lips. He gave her his pencil, letting their fingers brush a bit longer than what was customary, and watched her scribble down notes furiously. From that day on, they always seated themselves together and every few days, one of them always seemed to forget to bring a pencil.

Their sixth Valentine's Day was the first they spent in relative isolation away from potentially prying eyes. Their exam was in two days, but she'd somehow carelessly fallen ill. Her throat sore, her nose stuffed, and her limbs stiffly heavy, she was thoroughly prepared to sacrifice her wellbeing in order to properly prepare for that deathly examination. He was her faithful study-partner and once he heard that she was felled by a cold, he unhesitatingly knocked on her door with a bag of medicine and what seemed likely to bring a smile on her face. She learned that day that he, someone deemed perfect by so many, could only prepare one thing well in the kitchen – a lovely tomato soup that matched the feverish tint in her cheeks.

Their seventh Valentine's Day was the day of an extremely unexpected and totally unforeseen, record-break blizzard. They were securely huddled in his spacious townhouse next to the fireplace he'd lit, sipping mugs of mocha she brewed in the hopes that the bittersweet-ness wouldn't bother him too much. Piles of papers and discarded pencils lay strewn on the coffee table, but they would stay there until the next morning, when a sleep-befuddled girl would wake up for the first time with a boy's arm around her waist.

Their eighth Valentine's Day was the first they spent actually _together. _It was strange how long they'd known each other; all their other, mostly mutual, friends were paired off and matched with whomever seemed to be their soul-mates, but they were the only couple that had just made their relationship official. She found it strange that she was once again making homemade dark chocolates for him, though this time her entire heart and soul was included, after such a long time. He didn't find it quite as strange as he would've thought that he didn't mind spending the rest of his Valentine's Days with this girl.

One of their later Valentine's Days was the first they spent with matching silver bands on their respective finger. She'd found herself once again intertwined with her lover, but this time she could feel every little pulse and caress from him as if they were one entity. They shared more than just oxygen, a bittersweet torte, notes, or even just a kiss. She sighed in content as she looked at him lying so peacefully in her bare arms and when he awoke, he decided that today would be the first time he would be the one to do something with chocolate. Her sighs of simple joy quickly escalated to ones of passion as he voraciously consumed the sweetness he smeared along her tender flesh.

Their last Valentine's Day was the first time that they had been separated since the beginning of their story. One half was gone, while the other lingered on the cusp of eternal slumber. A smile and a few deep breaths of farewell were released and soon they were reunited, their tacit promises of every Valentine's Day henceforth to be spent with each other fulfilled forevermore.


End file.
